Thurston County home explosion likely caused by gas leak

An elderly woman was able to escape from a house fire and explosion early Friday morning south of Tumwater, according to East Olympia Fire District 6.

Firefighters responded to the home on the 1200 block of 93rd Avenue Southwest, south of the Olympia Regional Airport, at about 1:45 a.m. Firefighters found a fire in the back of the house, and most of the windows were blown out.

The fire and explosion likely started with a propane gas leak in the laundry room.

Twelve firefighters were able to get the fire under control in less than 30 minutes. The fire was mainly contained to the laundry room, but the explosion caused damage to other areas of the house.

Never miss a local story.

Sign up today for unlimited digital access to our website, apps, the digital newspaper and more.